Oxford Avenue, Terminal City � Wednesday, November 3, afternoon

Max kicked up a small pile of leaves as she stepped into one of the
small green areas of Terminal City.� About a block long and a hundred yards
wide, it held a few large trees that had survived the poison of the
chemical spill twelve years before, as well as some smaller ones that
had been planted months ago by the first transgenics to move into the
area.� The afternoon sun glittered through the treetops, bouncing off
the yellow and red leaves, eventually falling to illuminate the brown
ones on the ground.� The area served as a contrast to the drab and depressing
buildings and concrete that characterized the rest of Terminal City, as well as to the urban landscape Max
had known for much of her life.

Joshua sat under a tree, picking apart a leaf.

�Hey, big fella,� Max greeted, sitting down next to him.� �I thought
I�d find you here.�

�Nice to spend time outside,� he explained with a weak smile, glancing
up only briefly from his leaf.� �Couldn�t do it before…ever before.��
He paused for a moment, staring at the leaf, and then began shredding
it more vigorously.� �May not get to in the future, either.�

Max closed her hand around one of Joshua�s, forcing him to be still
and look at her.� �If you�re talking about the DNA dealio, we�ll take
care of it.�� She ignored his shaking head and moved on, lightening
her tone.� �I�m not gonna let them take you or anyone at Jam Pony.�
Who�s a girl gonna talk to to keep her sane?�

�Didn�t know Normal kept you sane,� joked Logan, stepping into the green area with a smile
on his face.

Max grinned and played along.� �Well, you know.� It�s a lot easier
to tolerate him when I�m not hearing �bip bip bip� all day long.�

��and now that you have a reason for not showing up to work,�
Logan added as he stood in front of Max and Joshua.�
Max was too busy feigning exasperation to notice the small wince Logan couldn�t quite hide.

�I seem to remember somebody asking me to spend my
workdays chasing smugglers and fishing files from locked buildings.�

�Didn�t you do most of that at night?�

�Busted,� Max agreed with a grin.

�Besides, it had to be done,�
Logan pointed out, a hint of the old righteous
indignation coming through in his voice and his eyes as he spoke.� �You
know it did.� And sometimes it seems like things are just getting worse
out there.�

Joshua finally broke in, unable to let that comment slide.� �Things
aren�t so great in here, either.�

�Yeah.�� Max�s joking mood evaporated.� �We gotta get this thing
straightened out.� The rest of the world�s just gonna have to wait.�

Logan eyed her, then looked around for a minute.�
He began speaking while still focused on some faraway point beyond the
trees.� �The thing is…I�m not sure how long it will.��

Washington D.C.

�The situation is unchanged from yesterday, sir,� a colonel in uniform
said, after saluting briefly. He laid a report on the general�s desk
in front of him.

�Very good, Colonel,� the other man replied with a nod.� �Dismissed.�

The colonel turned on his heel and walked out of the office.� Rising
from his seat, the general inserted the report into a briefcase, and
strode out of the room.� Downstairs, he exited the building and climbed
into the rear seat of a Buick.� The driver nodded at him curtly before
beginning the drive out of the city.

Reaching the outskirts of the city, the general transferred into
another Buick that was parked in a deserted commuter lot, barely taking
time to glance at the weeds growing through the cracked pavement.� He
drove this car himself, taking a circuitous route until he reached a
small office building that contained several suites.� He parked and
stepped down the stairs into the basement, entering the rearmost office
suite.� The reception area was deserted, and the general passed through
it without a second glance, walking into the back room and closing the
door behind him.

Sitting at a large conference table were two women and two men. �McKenzie,�
greeted one of the men.� �What did you find out?�

�Unchanged,� General McKenzie responded, sitting down and setting
the briefcase on the table.� He didn�t bother to open it.� �They�re
no more aggressive today than they were yesterday.�

�That�s good to know,� said a woman with bobbed hair.� �Buys us some
more time.� But it still doesn�t change the fact that our military is
woefully unprepared to match the aggressive buildup there, much less
their plans for future engagement. The project is becoming more and
more necessary every day.�

The first man nodded his agreement.� �It�s our best strategy.� We
need to deploy those soldiers there as well as other locations.� This
past year has really hurt us.�

The man and woman who had not yet spoken looked at each other, each
pausing and then nodding as well.� The man, clearly another general,
was in uniform, while the woman wore an expensive business suit. They
turned to the rest of the group and the woman spoke. �All right.�
Let�s do it.�

The others smiled in anticipation.